


Air Lanterns

by starofjems



Series: Learning to Fly [7]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Canonical Character Death, F/F, Spirit World (Avatar)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-31
Updated: 2021-02-06
Packaged: 2021-03-18 12:21:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 9,843
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29118180
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starofjems/pseuds/starofjems
Summary: "Akari throws her arms around Yangchen and pulls her into their first of many kisses. The world doesn’t stop. There are no fireworks or life-changing realizations. It’s a simple press of lips together that feels right. Akari is so happy.“You’re a firebending master!”“I love you.” "Winter ATLA Femslash Week focusing on Avatar Yangchen and Princess Akari, based on Yangchen's memoirs in Sands of TimeDay 1: KissesDay 2: AngstDay 3: Hair braidingDay 4: Childhood friendsDay 5: BendingDay 6: The MoonDay 7: Dancing/Free Day
Relationships: Yangchen (Avatar)/Original Female Character(s)
Series: Learning to Fly [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1791460
Comments: 55
Kudos: 59
Collections: Winter ATLA Femslash Week 2021





	1. Kisses

**Author's Note:**

> We're here, we're queer, it's time to share some Yangchen/Akari content :D
> 
> I decided to play around using present tense for the majority of these prompts so forgive me if it's a little rough/different from my usual writing style <3

Standing in front of the assembled Air Nomads with her fresh tattoos, Yangchen looks beautiful. She is stunning as she meets Akari’s eyes with a defiant smile and shoots a blast of fire into the air. As the crowd gasps, Akari wants to kiss her. As Yangchen swirls air around her first attempt at firebending, Akari is _overwhelmed_ with the desire to do so. 

But she doesn’t.

The thought escapes her as she catches sight of the elders’ expressions. They range from aghast to stupefied. Kisses are the last thing in Akari’s mind then as she doubles over with laughter.

One would think Akari would want to kiss Yangchen while saying farewell. But in fact all she wants is to hug her best friend and make it clear she will be visiting the North Pole soon. 

Soon ends up taking much longer than Akari initially hoped. As she exchanges letters with Yangchen and longs to visit her, Akari does not think about kisses. When they finally reunite, Akari is too excited to show off her firebending mastery tattoos and to make new friends for the thought of kissing to occur to her.

Finally, it is under the radiant glow of the spirit lights that Akari is hit with the thought of kissing Yangchen again. She catches the way Yangchen stares not at the lights in the sky, but at _Akari_ . The undeniable _love_ in Yangchen’s gaze warms Akari’s chest and radiates out to her limbs. Oh, how badly she wants to kiss Yangchen right now!

But she doesn’t.

Boma is right. Yangchen needs to make a name for herself as the Avatar before her relationship, as friend or otherwise, with the Fire Nation princess is publicized. Akari wants Yangchen to be the _best_ Avatar. She doesn’t want to get in the way of the world realizing how fantastic Yangchen is. 

So Akari pretends she doesn’t notice the way Yangchen stares at her. It’s not so hard to forget about kisses when the spirit lights are so mesmerizing. 

Fear grips Akari’s chest in a vice. She knows she’s hurt, but she can’t register the pain over sheer _panic._ Yangchen isn’t herself, and whichever past Avatar is controlling her body they just up and _left_! Tarkik yells at her to come back so he can heal her, but it’s white noise to Akari. She jumps on her dragon’s back and urges her to race after Yangchen’s glowing silhouette. 

There is nothing Akari can do but fret as Yangchen bends the frozen earth into towering, curved walls. It looks just like the caldera of Capital City and Akari at least has an idea now as to _which_ Avatar is controlling Yangchen. The brilliant light of Yangchen’s glowing tattoos and eyes starts to fade as the whirlwind keeping her afloat dwindles to bring her to the ground. 

Akari leaps off her dragon—ignores how she stumbles and collapses next to Yangchen’s standing body—and glares at the glow of Yangchen’s arrow. 

“Listen here, Szeto! I don’t care how helpful you think you’re being, you can’t just take over Yangchen’s body like that! At least communicate what you’re going to do instead of _running off_ with her! And don’t you think you overdid it with the bending there? If you hurt Yangchen in any way-”

The relief Akari feels is staggering as Yangchen at last opens her eyes with a wry smile. She could kiss her, she thinks.

She does.

With a teary gasp, Akari curls around Yangchen’s head and kisses her no longer glowing arrow.

The whole city of Agna Qel’a celebrates the success of Yangchen’s waterbending mastery group. Akari watches Yangchen move through the crowds, talking to anyone she makes eye contact with. Yangchen blends in with the crowd with her air of familiarity and the heavy, blue parka she wears. If it weren’t for Yangchen’s airbending tattoos, Akari could mistake her for someone who grew up here. 

Yangchen has been with the Water Tribe for only a little over a year, but it has already become a home to her. The people welcome her and she embraces them in turn. Akari can easily see Yangchen’s future as the Avatar. Everyone will love her.

Someone says something that makes Yangchen startle. She looks around the crowd with wide eyes until she finds Akari. Her smile is radiant. Akari wants to kiss it.

She doesn’t, but she does blow a silly kiss Yangchen’s way.

With a delighted laugh, Yangchen catches it and blows one back. 

Akari can’t stop smiling the rest of the night.

There are some _awful_ nobles in the Fire Nation court. They are selfish and conniving and Akari hates interacting with them, but she doesn’t hate _them_. 

Akari doesn’t hate easily. She grew up beside Yangchen, after all. For all others like to point out how Akari influenced Yangchen, they frequently miss Yangchen influenced Akari just as much. The Air Nomad philosophy of not harboring negative feelings is one Akari does her best to live by. She doesn’t dwell on her sorrow or her anger. The emotions still exist, but Akari feels them to their fullest and lets them go. Hatred is something she _wants_ to detach herself from.

But, oh, does she ever _hate_ Huizhong. With her stupid, dainty demeanor and her stupid, perfect hair. Akari hates Huizhong and the way she _smirks_ that stupid, innocent smile that goes completely over Yangchen’s head. It’s obvious Huizhong is just using Yangchen! 

(And maybe Akari hates Huizhong a little bit for eliciting these emotions out of her. She doesn’t _like_ all of this anger. She doesn’t _want_ to feel furious in the other girl’s presence. And yet she does. It makes Akari feel like an intruder to her own mind. This isn’t who she is. Why is she acting like this? Why can’t she stop?)

Worst of all, Huizhong _knows_ . She knows Akari is head over heels absolutely in love with Yangchen. To be fair, that isn’t saying much since _most_ people who spend more than an hour with the two of them know. But Yangchen hasn’t realized it yet. Yangchen doesn’t know and Akari’s sworn enemy does.

Okay, maybe Akari is being a bit dramatic. If Huizhong told Yangchen, nothing _bad_ would happen. Yangchen loves her, Akari _knows_ that. Maybe not in the same way—Akari thought so, but from the way she wrote about Huizhong in her letters maybe she was wrong—but that's fine. Akari is loved no matter the shape of that love.

It wouldn’t be awful, but it would undermine Akari’s attempts to open Yangchen’s eyes to how _awful_ Huizhong is. Instead of coming around to seeing how manipulative Huizhong is, Yangchen would discredit Akari’s arguments to pure jealousy. Akari isn’t _jealous_! Yangchen is allowed to find anyone she wants ‘breathtakingly beautiful’ or ‘more princess-like than you!’ 

Akari _isn’t_ jealous.

(Okay, maybe she is. Just a little. That princess comment was uncalled for.)

Every time Yangchen defends Huizhong, Akari wants to cry in frustration. Even when Huizhong is so _obviously_ taking a dig at Akari, it’s not obvious enough for Yangchen. She never defends _Akari._ It’s not fair. Akari just wants to protect Yangchen from the heartache of the day when she realizes Huizhong only sees her as a political stepping stone. 

That day doesn’t come.

Instead, Yangchen and Akari fight.

“--So obviously all of the girls in court can’t stand her. She’s the _worst_! And she’s just going to hurt you too!” Akari pushes the heel of her palm against her eyes. She refuses to cry.

Yangchen frowns. She reaches forward, as if to comfort Akari, but pulls her arm down to her side instead. The aborted action makes Akari’s chest ache. 

“Akari, you only have one side of these stories,” Yangchen says, her quiet voice rings all the louder in the aftermath of Akari’s impassioned shouting. “Could Huizhong have been nicer in the past? Perhaps. But those girls don’t sound very nice either.”

Akari scoffs and crosses her arms petulantly. “Well, it’s hard to be nice to someone so fake.”

“You’ve never given her the _chance_ to open up to you!” 

Oh, that was _rich_ coming from the girl who wrote about how closed off Huizhong was and how worried she was that Huizhong might not like her. Akari doesn’t _get_ it. Why is Yangchen so adamant to be Huizhong’s friend when all evidence points toward it all being wasted efforts?

“Sure, because she’s been _so_ open with you.”

Instead of backing down, Yangchen steps forward with her hands on her hips. “Because she’s scared! Isn’t it obvious from everything _you’ve_ uncovered about her court life? She doesn’t have any friends! Everyone she’s ever been friendly with hates her now. She’s lonely and scared of me turning on her like all those court girls did.”

Akari stares at the ground and bites her lip. She hates this. If Huizhong were anyone else, Akari knows she would be on Yangchen’s side. She’s given second chances to plenty of people that others say didn’t deserve it. Why didn’t she give Huizhong a first chance?

(She knows why, deep down, and hates herself for it. How could she let petty jealousy turn her into this person she hardly recognizes?)

“Fine, but she’s still using you for political gain,” Akari mumbles.

Yangchen rolls her eyes. “Not everyone can be above politics like you are, Akari. You’re literally _at the top_ ! There’s nowhere else for you to go by being my friend. So what if she and her family gain some standing through our friendship? I don’t _care_ about that. I just want to be there for her, if she wants it. And I think she does.”

It’s ridiculous they’re having this fight, because Akari has made similar arguments about her friendships with lower nobles and commoners. They shouldn’t be having this fight! But they are, and it’s all Akari’s fault.

“Alright, you’re right,” Akari says. She sighs and her shoulders slump down as her anger dissipates. “I still don’t like her…”

“I don’t care! Either you _try_ to be her friend or you’re going to stop visiting me until my earthbending training is done.”

The words pierce Akari’s heart. Cold dread runs through her veins and she looks up with wide eyes. Yangchen’s brows are set in a stern stare. She is deadly serious. She would push Akari away over this.

Akari swallows roughly and nods. “Okay, I’ll make an effort to be friends with her.” 

Yangchen smiles. It does little to soothe the ache in Akari’s chest. Akari doesn’t want to kiss Yangchen right now. No, she wishes Yangchen would soothe her doubts and kiss _her._ Everything would be fine if Yangchen would just pull Akari into her arms and kiss her tears away. 

Yangchen doesn’t.

“Good, now you’re going to apologize again. _For real_ this time.”

Akari knows Yangchen still loves her, but she’s also disappointed in her. It’s fine. Akari can work to fix the mess she’s made. And she’ll continue to be happy with whatever shape Yangchen’s love takes.

Yangchen at last bends earth with ease and Akari sees another glimpse of the amazing Avatar she will become. In the years it took Yangchen to master her opposing element, she has grown sturdier, more firm in her words. She’s learned how to debate with Huizhong and doesn’t hesitate to use her acquired skills to speak up for what she believes in. Yangchen is stunning.

“You have some drool, just here,” Huizhong says, wiping at Akari’s jaw. 

Akari pushes her away with an exasperated laugh. “Shut up! I do not!”

“Hm, I think I’ll tell Yangchen otherwise.” Huizhong hides her giggle behind her sleeve. “She has been quite concerned what you would think of her demonstration.”

Curiosity overpowers embarrassment. Akari leans in closer, but doesn’t dare tear her eyes away from Yangchen’s earthbending performance. “What do you mean, she was concerned?”

Mouth still hidden behind her sleeve, Huizhong’s eyes sparkle with her mirth. “Oh, she’s been fretting for weeks now if you’d be impressed or not.”

A rush of emotions distracts Akari from Yangchen. She loves her best friend _so much_. It makes her chest swell and her stomach swoop. 

“I’m _always_ impressed by what Yangchen does,” Akari says as she claps with the rest of the nobles to the move Yangchen just executed.

“We are all well aware.”

Akari’s chair moves underneath her, making her hand go wide and miss in her attempt to swat at Huizhong. Her surprised squeak draws the attention of surrounding nobles, and Yangchen. Mid-move, Yangchen’s gaze focuses on Akari and Huizhong. She doesn’t falter, but she does grace them with a brilliant smile.

Agni, Akari wants to kiss her so bad.

“When are you going to stop drawing this out and kiss her already?”

“That’s- I- Huizhong!” Akari looks around anxiously to see who overheard, but no one is looking their way anymore. She sighs and slumps back in her chair. “I’m about to be her firebending instructor, I don’t think it’s really professional to initiate anything right now-”

“Oh please.” Huizhong rolls her eyes. “Like there’s anything _professional_ about her childhood friend teaching her. I don’t understand why you’re holding back. She’s quite clearly just as besotted as you are.”

“I’m not _holding back_ . I’m just-” Akari watches as Yangchen’s hair flies out behind her as she turns. It feels like it was only yesterday Yangchen’s hair was freshly shaven and she presented her air lantern to the Air Nomads. Now, Yangchen’s hair falls past her shoulders and she’s presenting her earthbending to the Ba Sing Se court. Soon, her hair will be longer yet and she’ll be besting Akari in combat to claim her firebending master title. “We’re both still changing and growing as people. We don’t need to change how we are _with_ each other on top of that. For now, at least.”

Huizhong hums. “Those are surprisingly wise words from you.”

“Oh shut up,” Akari says with a soft laugh.

Akari wants to kiss Yangchen.

She doesn’t.

But, she will.

Living _with_ Yangchen is like a dream come true. For all the time they spent together growing up, they still lived oceans and cultures apart. Akari is used to getting her fill of Yangchen, then going weeks or months on end without seeing her again. Now she sees Yangchen every day. It’s _fantastic_!

It’s also excruciating. 

Akari never thought she could have _too much_ of Yangchen in her life, but it seems that is what the world has come to. Before, whenever she would reach the point where all she can think about is Yangchen, they would part ways and Akari had time to compose herself. There’s no escaping her thoughts now. 

Even as she works with Tarkik, her mind wanders to what Yangchen may be up to. The atmosphere created by Huizhong and Siniq’s flirting doesn’t help one bit either. Watching her friends be tooth-rottingly adorable makes Akari want to do the same. _She_ wants to make doe-eyes at Yangchen and fluster her with cute passing comments!

Tarkik teases her, as do Siniq and Huizhong. There’s no reason for Akari to bother with flirting. She’s already blatantly declaring her undying love by developing a new firebending technique all for Yangchen.

It’s a very silly argument, because Akari would do that for Yangchen whether she was _in_ love with her or not. 

The way Yangchen looks at her as if she’s the _sun_ once Akari presents her gentle flame does make the whole ordeal feel like a proclamation, though.

Akari _yearns_ to hold Yangchen tight and never let go. She wants to kiss her, wants to _cherish_ her in every way possible. 

But, she doesn’t. 

It just isn’t the right time. Yangchen should have time to establish herself as the Avatar before making romantic ties with Akari. The _world_ needs time to get to know Yangchen as the Avatar before they have to reconcile with the fact the Avatar is in love with the Fire Nation princess. There are political ramifications to their relationship, and Akari needs to be the responsible one and keep them in mind!

Akari’s mind goes blank when she falls to the ground and Yangchen stands above her, posed to deliver a finishing blow that would never come. Sweat drips down Yangchen’s brow. Strands of hair have escaped her up do and stick to her skin. She breathes heavily from the exertion of their fight and her eyes slowly widen with the realization she _won_.

“Does this make me a firebending master now,” Yangchen asks, half in jest and half in awe. She turns her fist and opens her hand in an offering to help Akari off the ground.

Yangchen is _beautiful_ as she pulls Akari to her feet. Her smile is excited and hopeful. Akari wants to kiss it.

This time, she does.

Akari throws her arms around Yangchen and pulls her into their first of many kisses. The world doesn’t stop. There are no fireworks or life-changing realizations. It’s a simple press of lips together that feels _right_ . Akari is so _happy_.

“You’re a firebending master!”

“I love you.”

They speak at the same time as they part a few scant inches apart. 

Helpless giggles bubble in Akari’s chest and Yangchen furrows her brow in confusion. She wants to kiss it too. 

She can.

So Akari pulls Yangchen’s face down to smooch the cute crease in her forehead. 

“I love you too, dork. But more importantly, Ms. Avatar, you just completed your firebending training.”

Yangchen blinks, then breaks out into a wide smile and pulls Akari in for another quick kiss. 

“I have my amazing teacher to thank for that.”

Siniq gives her brother one last hug. It will be strange, leaving the Fire Nation without him. They’ve never truly been apart before, but she knows they’ll be fine. At the rate he and Akari are working on their bending theory, it won’t be long until he follows her home.

With a girlish squeal, Akari launches herself at Siniq and hugs the breath out of her. Siniq snorts and gives her friend a playful spin before setting her down. Her hug with Yangchen is more subdued, but she gives her a spin as well for equality’s sake. Yangchen’s startled laugh is worth it.

Then, there’s only Huizhong to give her final farewells to. 

The group stands at the end of the dock where a Northern Water Tribe ship waits to take Siniq home. Siniq offered to take Huizhong home, despite Ba Sing Se being out of the way, but Huizhong _hates_ boats and politely declined. She will be going home by flying bison, courtesy of Yangchen and Shosha.

What is Siniq supposed to say? They promised to write to each other and made plans for Siniq to visit Ba Sing Se soon. While they haven’t _explicitly_ stated they’re together, it’s been heavily implied by both of them. How should Siniq say goodbye now? A bow? A hug? A kiss on the cheek? Or would that be too bold-

Siniq’s feet slip out from under her. As she begins to fall, a column of earth shoots up and catches her in a seated position. There’s no time to react to the surprise attack. The moment Siniq is on her rocky throne, Huizhong places her hands on Siniq’s cheeks and pulls her into a deep kiss. Trust Huizhong to know the _best_ way to see Siniq off.

The softness of Huizhong’s painted lips is juxtaposed by her firm passion. Siniq reaches up to slide her hands around Huizhong’s waist, then pulls her into Siniq’s lap to get a better angle. Someone groans off to the side, probably Tarkik, and yeah, that’s Akari giggling. Siniq flicks them off.

Huizhong pulls away with several short kisses, then slides to her feet and adjusts her skirts. Her lipstick is smeared and Siniq has no doubt some now adorns her own lips. Other than her lipstick, however, Huizhong is the picture of grace. As if she hasn’t just shoved Siniq down to kiss her into seeing stars.

“I’ll be expecting a letter when you arrive home.”

Siniq laughs. She jumps to her feet, catches one last kiss from Huizhong, then runs down the dock. If she stays a second longer, she’ll scrape her plans to go home and just follow Huizhong to Ba Sing Se. 

“Of course, darling. See you soon!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing the Huizhong drama from Akari's POV was mmm chefs kiss. I love these girls :')
> 
> And a bonus Siniq/Huizhong!!! I was gonna try to do a little snippet of them for every prompt but I barely finished Yangchen/Akari ahha... So sadly this is the only Siniq/Huizhong bonus u.u
> 
> We're here all week! See y'all tomorrow!


	2. Angst

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Day 2: Angst (with a happy ending)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :')

Chaos.

Yangchen returns to the physical world and it’s in complete chaos. 

Her spirit aches as the sun’s light fills the sky once more.

There is no rage. No sorrow. Only a blank numbness pushing her body through the movements to drive the attackers off.

It doesn’t feel real.

It can’t be real.

That spirit was trying to mess with her head. 

Akari isn’t- Huizhong isn’t-

The sky’s sun has returned to its radiance.

Yangchen’s sun will never shine on her in this world again.

  
  


“Aunt Yangchen!” 

Nukilik races around the corner of the building. Their feet begin to slide out from underneath them, but they bend the ice street into a small barrier to keep their balance. Behind them, Siniq laughs as Tarkik rolls his eyes and smooths the street flat once more.

It’s been too long since Yangchen visited Agna Qel’a. Nukilik is the age where they grow in a blink of an eye. As they slam into Yangchen in an enthusiastic hug, she needs to take a step back to keep them both standing. Last Yangchen had seen Nukilik, they were small enough she could scoop them up effortlessly with a single arm.

“I missed you!” Nukilik exclaims into Yangchen’s middle. Their arms tighten around her.

Yangchen’s chest aches. The gaping chasm of her soul echoes Nukilik’s words. 

Yangchen smiles as she drops to her knees and returns Nukilik’s tight hug.

“And I have missed you, my little flurry.”

Nukilik giggles. They squirm out of Yangchen’s hold to stomp the ground. Ice shoots up in a solid column. Grinning triumphantly, Nukilik raises their chin with their hands on their hips. “I’m not a flurry anymore! I’m a big strong iceberg. Or glacier!”

“Oh, my apologies, then, my little glacier.”

“Aama!” Nukilik whines, turning to Siniq. “Aunt Yangchen is teasing me!”

“That’s our job as aunts and uncles,” Tarkik says. He ruffles Nukilik’s hair, ignoring their shrill protest, and offers Yangchen a hand up. His voice is quiet as he asks, “How are you feeling?”

“No better, no worse,” Yangchen says. It’s no different than when they saw each other last.

Akari and Huizhong are gone from this world, and with them a part of Yangchen’s spirit. It never stops aching. Some days it is a dull thrum, easy to push aside. Others, it's as if the fissure is trying to spread and break her from the inside out.

In moments like this, with Nukilik smiling radiantly, Yangchen only feels joy. There is the faintest pang of bittersweet melancholy that Huizhong is not here to see her brilliant child, that Akari is not here to join Yangchen in their role as loving aunts. They are not here, but Yangchen takes comfort that their spirits are watching.

Yangchen has let go of her grief and her regrets. She has forgiven herself, but the pain remains. It is impossible to ignore in the dead of night with the absence of Akari’s warmth. The steady burn of the hole in her spirit makes it impossible to  _ not  _ dwell on Akari’s absence. 

“Well, let me take a look at you anyways,” Tarkik says.

They both know there is nothing his water can do to ease her agony. They will both go through the actions anyway for the comfort of at least trying. Her spirit is fractured, but it will not break just yet, not with her family there to hold her together.

  
  


“Aunt Yangchen!”

Nukilik leaps off Indra’s flying bison and hits the ground running. Even as they’ve grown older, Nukilik’s smile is still so radiant with their unbridled joy. 

“I’ve missed you!” They cheer as they scoop Yangchen up in a hug and twirl her around. 

Yangchen lets out a startled yelp and her cane clatters to the ground. When did Nukilik grow so tall, so strong? Surely it has not been so long since she has last seen them. 

As if they read her mind, Nukilik gently sets Yangchen down, supporting her with a cheeky grin. “I had a growth spurt. Not so little a glacier now, am I?”

“On the contrary, it doesn’t matter how tall you grow.” Yangchen reaches up to ruffle Nukilik’s hair. “You’ll always be my  _ little _ glacier.”

“Darn it,” Nukilik says, not in the least put out by her answer. They pick up Yangchen’s cane and make sure she’s standing steady before pressing a quick kiss to her cheek and running back to help unpack luggage. In their haste, Nukilik trips over their own feet and has to scramble to stay upright. 

Siniq laughs, arms full of bags as she approaches Yangchen. “It was a sudden growth spurt, so they’re still getting used to all their gangly limbs. It’s been the height of entertainment the past few weeks.”

Yangchen can’t muster the energy to smile now that Nukilik’s attention is off of her. She leans heavily against her cane and hopes her eyes reflect her happiness. Her whole body aches, feels as if stones are tied to every joint. The pain in her soul stabs at her chest and threatens to break her any day now. 

“We’re here just in time, aren’t we?” Siniq asks with a wry smile. 

It feels like admitting defeat, but Yangchen can’t deny it anymore. 

“I’m tired,” she whispers. 

When Yangchen sees Nukilik, it feels as if the years have gone past in a mere blink. On the road, performing her duties as the Avatar, the countless days seeing healers, they all make Yangchen feel as if time is slowing down. 

Yangchen wants to stay longer, to cherish her family and continue to help the world.

But she needs to rest, to free herself of her pain and see Akari and Huizhong once more.

With a soft smile, Siniq presses her forehead to Yangchen’s shoulder. “Well, there’s no better rest than having your family at your side.”

Peace.

Yangchen opens her eyes and feels at peace for the first time in many years.

She feels weightless, free.

A young girl sits at the edge of a canyon, patiently waiting for someone to acknowledge her.

Her eyes open, and the sun shines on Yangchen.

“I’ve been waiting for you.”

Yangchen takes a step forward. 

She is an old woman, relieved her work is finished.

She is a young woman, joyous at the sight of a marriage band on her wrist.

She is a young girl, excited about the stranger at her doorstep. 

“I’m sorry I took so long.”

The girl stands.

“Nonsense, you took the time you needed.” 

Akari smiles and welcomes Yangchen in her embrace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nukilik is super cute <3


	3. Hair Braiding

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Day 3: Hair braiding (with a sprinkle of pining)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's Akari yearning part 2 ft yangchen's hair instead of kisses ahaha

The soft glow of the candles lining Yangchen’s room reflects off her hair as Akari brushes through it. Yangchen’s hair isn’t as soft as Akari’s. It’s always somewhat windswept and tangled from her airbending, and she doesn’t have any servants or expensive products to help smooth it out. Regardless, Akari is delighted to play with it.

Akari is a princess. Servants always style her hair. Sometimes her mother will brush it and put it up before bed. No one has ever asked Akari if she  _ wants  _ to learn how to do something as simple as a braid. To be fair, Akari herself didn’t realize she wanted to learn until now.

Until Yangchen.

Yangchen, who offered to braid Akari’s hair before bed when she woke up with a horrendous bed head the morning prior. Yangchen, who offered herself as Akari’s practice subject so she could learn how to braid by herself.

It’s only been a couple of days since they met, but Akari knows she wants to keep Yangchen in her life forever. 

As a nun pulls the hood back to reveal Yangchen, Akari bites back a gasp. She  _ knew  _ Yangchen would have to shave her hair to receive her tattoos, but it’s still a surprising sight. Yangchen’s beautiful tresses are gone, but she is no less stunning for it.

Akari is captivated by the smooth curve of Yangchen’s scalp and the brilliant blue adorning her skin. She doesn’t know whether Yangchen plans to grow her hair out again or not, but Akari knows anything Yangchen decides will still steal Akari’s breath away.

Thoughts of running her fingers along blue lines instead of through thick hair are soon enough brushed aside by thoughts of kisses.

In a little over a year, Yangchen’s hair has grown to brush her jawline. It’s not enough to pull back, but just enough for Akari to fill with thin, short braids. The mindless action of weaving strands of hair together helps calm the persistent anxious buzz under her skin. 

“I should be the one pampering you right now,” Yangchen says with a small laugh. 

Akari snorts and sections out another small braid. She may have gotten injured in their fight against those dark spirits, but Yangchen was the one to get possessed by a past life. Even if Yangchen doesn’t see it that way.

“Tarkik healed me up perfectly. Let me play with your hair in peace.”

With a soft laugh, Yangchen relaxes against Akari’s legs and closes her eyes. Akari continues braiding until she runs out of hair to do it. She smiles when Yangchen doesn’t stir as she undoes the braids and begins anew. 

The lingering dread and fear fades away with every pass of hair between Akari’s fingertips. She continues until there is nothing on her mind except the methodical process of braiding Yangchen’s hair.

“May I come in?” Yangchen asks as she slides the door to Akari’s room open.

Akari doesn’t want to see anyone right now, not even Yangchen. Her heart feels heavy. Guilt is trying to suffocate her, and just for a moment, Akari wants to wallow in it. She’s been awful to Huizhong. She almost ruined her relationship with Yangchen over her petty jealousy. 

Properly apologizing to Huizhong did not absolve Akari of her shame. It only proved to make her feel  _ worse _ , because now she could finally see for herself what Yangchen saw in Huizhong. She  _ saw  _ the vulnerability Huizhong was too surprised to mask as Akari gave a sincere apology. Huizhong forgave her, but Akari knows she only did so because she felt she  _ should _ .

“I’m not-” Akari pauses as Yangchen holds up a hair brush. 

Now that’s just not playing fair. Yangchen’s hair has grown past her shoulders during her time in Ba Sing Se. It’s almost the same length from before receiving her mastery tattoos. Akari loves whatever Yangchen chooses to do with her hair, but she can’t deny the longer it is, the more she enjoys braiding it.

They don’t speak as they settle into a routine as old as their friendship. With Akari seated on the edge of the bed and Yangchen on the floor between her legs, it's easy to fall into the lull. It’s been a while since they’ve had a moment like this. Akari’ has learned some new types of braids from Siniq and Tarkik that she’s excited to finally practice. 

It’s only after Akari completes and undoes several braids that she realizes Yangchen has broken the routine. She has relaxed against Akari’s legs, but has not fallen asleep yet. Her soft voice breaks the illusion of normalcy.

“Huizhong came to me this afternoon. She said you apologized to her.”

Akari closes her eyes. A lump forms in her throat. She has no right to want to  _ cry  _ over her guilt. Huizhong is the one allowed to cry in this situation, not Akari. 

“I  _ said  _ I would.”

“I wasn’t doubting you, Akari. I knew you would.” Yangchen tilts her head back against Akari’s thigh to look up at her. “It sounds like you gave a real sincere, heartfelt apology. Huizhong was a little unsettled by it, actually.”

The lump is painful to swallow around. Akari keeps her gaze focused on the tendrils of hair she can twirl around her fingers. 

“Yeah, I figured. I don’t think anyone’s ever apologized for being awful to her before.”

Yangchen hums and pulls Akari’s hand out of her hair to trace the swirling flame tattooed in her palm. “Perhaps. But she’s definitely never forgiven someone either.”

There’s nothing Akari can say. How can she tell Yangchen she thinks she doesn’t  _ deserve  _ Huizhong’s forgiveness? 

“You know, there’s something we say about forgiveness.”

Akari knows plenty of Air Nomad teachings. She was practically half raised by some of the nuns at the Western Air Temple, what with how often she was there. Anything they may have said about forgiveness evades her memory though.

“Sometimes, the hardest person to forgive is yourself,” Yangchen says. She presses her cheek against Akari’s palm and smiles up at her. “It’s okay to forgive yourself for this, Akari.”

Sniffling back tears, Akari curls around Yangchen and buries her face into soft hair. She loves Yangchen so much, loves her compassion, loves her wisdom. No one knows Akari better, no one makes Akari feel so  _ seen _ .

There’s still work to be done. Akari cannot stop with an apology, she needs to work to mend the damage she has done and hopefully build a new relationship with Huizhong. 

But, for now, Akari can find it in her to forgive herself.

Gentle hands pull Akari’s hair loose. Soft lips press against the shell of her ear.

“You planned a beautiful ceremony,” Yangchen whispers as she helps Akari out of her wedding finery. 

Akari smiles and turns to kiss Yangchen. Pressed against her back, she’s too tall and doesn’t give Akari room to compensate for their height difference. Her kiss falls short and brushes against Yangchen’s jaw. 

Neither of them mind as Yangchen laughs and guides Akari to the bed. She sits on the edge and presses Akari’s tattooed palms to her cheeks. 

“Let me braid your hair tonight.”

It’s not what Akari expected Yangchen to say, but she is far from disappointed. She happily drops to the ground and positions herself between Yangchen’s legs. 

“I love you,” Yangchen says with her voice.

_ I love you _ , Yangchen says with every pass of her fingers through Akari’s hair, and has been saying for all the years they’ve known each other.

Akari melts against her partner’s calf and drifts off to the soothing pull of Yangchen weaving their love in her hair.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im excited to post tomorrows prompt owo see ya thennn


	4. Childhood Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Day 4: Childhood friends

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So fun fact: maybe a third of this was written back in October when I was starting Sands of Time and I hadn't decided yet how I was gonna share Yangchen's story. I realized I wanted to do a memoir style instead and this sat in my drafts for months... until I saw the prompts for femslash week and said! Oh! I have reason to finish this! :D 
> 
> So sudden jump to past tense bc I wasn't about to go back and change to present to match the rest of these prompts haha enjoy!

“--been there since morning--”

“--Sister Tashi turned her away, what is she still doing there?”

Whispers of the strange visitor carried through the temple. Gentle winds wrapped around Yangchen, sharing the voices carried through its currents, then continued blowing past. Yangchen stared up at the lip of the canyon. Curiosity coursed through her like a tempest. 

There were no rules against visitors nor greeting them, but the nuns warned the young trainees to be wary of outsiders. The rest of the world wasn’t all violence and untrustworthy—more good existed in humanity than bad—but the nuns cautioned that in their youth and inexperience, young airbenders could struggle to differentiate the righteous and the deceitful. 

If Sister Tashi turned this visitor away, surely it was for good reason. One of the older girls claimed she overheard Sister Tashi discussing with another nun that the visitor was just a young girl without a chaperone. Another girl claimed the visitor was a murderer in disguise. Yangchen herself heard some of the nuns say the visitor had asked for a guide through the mountains.

Shosha groaned as she nudged Yangchen with her head. She was always eager to fly, and couldn’t understand why they were lingering so long after Yangchen put on Shosha’s reins. 

“Sorry, sorry,” Yangchen said with a soft laugh, patting the sky bison on her nose. 

At the very least, Yangchen could observe the visitor from afar to sate her curiosity. Decision made, Yangchen twirled the air around her feet and weightlessly jumped atop Shosha. The sky bison rumbled in her delight, wasting no time to take off into the canyon. 

The small figure on the ground could have been easy to miss if not for the brilliant reds of her robes. Yangchen peered over the side of Shosha’s saddle, urging her lower for a better look. The visitor did seem to be a young girl. She sat on her folded legs in a perfect seiza form. Had she been sitting like this since morning? That was a strong constitution… Surely a criminal wouldn’t be respectfully waiting outside the temple like this, right?

Yangchen urged Shosha closer still, but the young sky bison did not pick up on Yangchen’s desire for stealth. She rumbled a greeting to the red-clad girl, who startled so badly she toppled to her side on the ground. 

“Shosha!” Yangchen whined, lightly smacking her friend’s horn. “Well, might as well say hello now that you’ve given us away.”

The strange girl gawked at Shosha with wide, golden eyes. Yangchen had never seen someone with  _ gold  _ eyes before. All the airbenders she ever met had gray or brown eyes. Of the people who came to the temple for guidance, Yangchen had seen a multitude of colors, but never had Yangchen ever seen someone with miniature suns captured in their gaze.

Much of this girl was new and unfamiliar to Yangchen. The fabric of her clothes was the vibrant red of autumn leaves, and shimmered slightly in the sun. Her hair fell around her shoulders in thick waves, but was pulled back out of her face by a small ponytail. As she stood and bowed, her hands joined together in a strange pose. 

“Hi! You surprised me. I wasn’t expecting anyone else to show up till evening at  _ least! _ ” The girl smiled brilliantly at Yangchen as she floated down from Shosha’s head. “Your sky bison is so cute! Can I pet her? What’s her name?”

Without waiting for an answer, the girl started approaching. Shosha happily lowered her head to put her favorite scratching spot behind her ear within reach. Before Yangchen could speak, the girl took Shosha’s action as permission and buried her hands in her fur. 

“Oh she’s so soft! It’s amazing how she just airbends to fly! She looked like a cloud before I realized she had horns and someone on her head. Dragons are much louder when they fly, with all their flapping about. Not nearly as soft to pet either. Oh, sorry, my name is Akari. What’s yours?”

The onslaught of words left Yangchen momentarily at a loss for a response. Thankfully, Akari did not continue speaking before Yangchen could answer, as she was too focused on burying her face in Shosha’s fur. 

This girl  _ couldn’t  _ be any older than Yangchen. They were of the same size, but Yangchen suspected this excitable, talkative behavior was a sign of Akari being younger than Yangchen’s mature eight years of age. Surely someone so young and delighted to pet a sky bison couldn’t hold ill will for anyone in the temple. Why had Sister Tashi turned her away?

“I’m Yangchen. That’s Shosha you’re trying to become one with.” 

Rather than extricating herself from Shosha's fluff, Akari burrowed deeper so white fur almost consumed all red fabric from sight. Yangchen giggled, knowing full well how enjoyable snuggling into sky bison fur was. However, once Akari pulled away, she would be finding fur everywhere for days.

"What are you doing here?" 

Akari popped her head out of fluffy depths to grant Yangchen with a guileless smile. "I had a spirit dream about my ancient ancestors, so I gotta find their old home!" 

Although the nuns said that spirits could visit  _ anyone,  _ Yangchen still felt skeptical about Akari’s claim. Would the spirits really visit a  _ child _ ? And then could that child really interpret their intentions properly? The nuns said that it could take a lifetime to understand the spirits, and even then they still escaped human comprehension. 

“You’re from the Fire Nation, right?” Akari nodded, so Yangchen continued. “Well, I’m not trying to say you weren’t visited by the spirits, but don’t you think you might have gotten confused? You do realize this isn’t the island where the Sun Warriors were, right?”

“Oh, but the Sun Warriors weren’t my ancestors! Or, actually, they probably are from some parts of the family? But-!” Akari stepped away from Shosha to wave her arms toward the sky. “I dreamed of dragons flying without wings and people riding them and people flying next to them! They were firebenders and airbenders living together with dragons that could bend both elements!”

With a hop, Akari turned to Yangchen and grabbed her hands. “This air temple is the closest to the Fire Nation, so surely some of  _ your  _ ancestors had to have come from these people and  _ this  _ is the island from my dreams!”

“That- It-” Yangchen didn’t want to completely disregard Akari’s claims. It wasn’t her place to say if Akari truly had spirit dreams or not. But it all sounded so fanciful. Dragons that could firebend  _ and  _ airbend? Everyone knew sky bison were the original airbenders! Yet, it was in the strangeness that Yangchen found it somewhat believable. Whose imagination could come up with such a thing?

“If these dragons and people existed, why are the spirits only reaching out  _ now _ and to you?”

Yangchen’s words came out more judgemental than she intended, but Akari didn’t take offense. She smiled and swung their joint hands between them. 

“Maybe they’ve been reaching out for a while, but I’m just the first to listen.”

The simplicity of Akari’s answer made it all the more profound. Yangchen squeezed Akari’s hands and brought their swinging to a stop. She'd made up her mind.

“Shosha is still rather small, but she can manage carrying both of us to the mountains. We’ll have to explore on foot quite a bit so not to tire her out but-”

“Thank you!” Akari exclaimed, throwing herself at Yangchen and wrapping her arms around her in a tight hug. “Thank you so much! Can we go now? I’ve never ridden a sky bison before. I’m so excited!”

One day of helping Akari turned into two, then three… On the morning of the fourth day, Yangchen had every intention of hopping on Shosha and spending yet another day adventuring through the mountains. Both girls woke with the sunrise, and Akari happily helped Yangchen speed through her daily chores before they set out. Akari wasn’t very  _ good  _ at helping, but her efforts endeared her to those who'd been skeptical about welcoming the girl in the temple walls.

With chores complete, Yangchen sent Akari to ready Shosha as she packed them lunch for the day. Her plans went awry when Sister Jamyang stopped Yangchen from leaving the kitchen, quite literally with a small suction of air halting her steps.

“Yangchen, the other sisters are growing concerned about your studies,” Jamyang said. She lifted Yangchen’s lunch sack out of her grasp, then effortlessly unpacked everything with her bending. The items did not go back to their shelves. Instead, Jamyang summoned more food and repacked everything, much neater than Yangchen had initially managed. “And I’ve been concerned if you’ve been eating properly. Honestly child, hiking the mountains takes much more energy than you would expect.”

“It’s only been a couple of days!” Yangchen groaned. She draped herself across the kitchen table and stared up at Jamyang with a pout. “Diki wasted weeks making her crappy sculptures and doing  _ nothing  _ else before the elders got on her to go back to studying.”

Jamyang winked as she held out Yangchen’s repacked bag. “I raised a similar point. They argued it was a suitable self-study.”

“Yeah, well Akari is telling me all about the Fire Nation. Way more than I’ve learned from any of my lessons!” Yangchen grinned and swung her bag over her shoulder. “So I’m doing a self-study too. While getting some physical training in as well!”

“Ah, that is sound reasoning. I’ll be sure to share it with the others.”

Was that a test Yangchen just passed? Yangchen scrunched her nose as she stared Jamyang down. The old airbender smiled serenely and gestured to the door. 

“Best not to keep your friend waiting, Yangchen. I would not put it past her to grow impatient and take Shosha without you.”

Yangchen didn’t  _ think  _ Akari would do such a thing, but she wasn’t about to take that chance. With a grateful wave, Yangchen raced down the halls to begin another day of exploration.

  
  


“But what do you do when you and Haruo fight? There’s no one to mediate if it’s just the two of you!”

Akari kicked at a pebble. “Well most of the time I pull the big sister card, that I’m always right. But if he doesn’t like that, then Mom or a teacher has to step in.”

It was strange to consider an  _ adult  _ getting involved with the affairs of children. The nuns only stepped in on squabbles between the younger airbenders if it was  _ really  _ serious. Otherwise, they were supposed to come to resolution on their own.

“That’s crazy,” Yangchen said.

“Your way is kinda crazy too!” Akari said with a laugh. “But I think it makes sense if you have tons and tons of siblings like you do! You  _ gotta  _ work it out by yourselves or you’d never get along!”

Yangchen smiled. It was so  _ interesting  _ to hear about Akari’s way of life. There were so many things that were  _ weird _ , but made sense when given context. Akari was good at finding that context and reframing her opinions without a second thought. The elders were silly if they couldn’t see how educational spending time with Akari was.

And fun. It was really fun.

“What do you think about-”

The ground shook under their feet. Dirt and small rocks clattered down from the cliffside above them. Akari and Yangchen froze, staring at each other with wide eyes. 

“Do you think there could be a herd of goat elks running by?” Akari asked with a forced note of levity.

The shaking grew worse. Akari stumbled and Yangchen grabbed her hand to pull her closer. She opened her glider with her free hand. 

“Let’s-”

With a deafening roar, the ground split from underneath them. Akari shrieked as they began to fall. Yangchen tried to summon the proper winds to catch her glider and guide them to safety, but she could not fight the pull of gravity. There was no time to let her terror overcome her. Spinning around to face the rapidly approaching ground, Yangchen swung her glider downward to create a pillow of air to catch them. 

The last thing Yangchen heard as darkness consumed her was Akari’s hysterical and relieved laughter.

  
  


The embrace of the summer sun roused Yangchen. Her dreams flitted away from consciousness, leaving her with the vestiges of chilled terror and the agony of her chest torn in two. There was no room for pain as gentle warmth buoyed her soul.

Yangchen opened her eyes to the brilliant glow of multi-colored, golden flames. 

Crouched over her prone body, Akari held her fire-encased hands to Yangchen’s chest. Her face contorted in pained concentration. What was she doing? How could Yangchen feel the strength of Akari’s flames from the inside, and yet not feel the burn on her skin?

“Akari?” Yangchen asked in a small voice.

The golden eyes that had captivated Yangchen when they first met were dim. It was as if the radiance in Akari’s gaze had been transferred to the rainbow flames in her hands. Akari smiled wearily. It was nothing like her usual, broad grins. 

“Oh, thank Agni you’re awake,” Akari said as she pulled her hands away from Yangchen. She looked at her fire with a frown, as if only now noticing its color. “It’s like dragon fire, but… Not.”

Akari swayed, then began to fall. Heart in her throat, Yangchen shot up to catch her friend. She looked so  _ tired _ . 

“What’s going on? Are you hurt? Last I remember is bending a cushion of air to soften our fall and-”

“Don’t know... You wouldn’t wake up! Had to do something…” Akari trailed off as her eyelids fluttered. She fought to keep them open, but her gaze was still dull and unfocused. “You were in trouble.”

“You’re not making any sense!” Yangchen staggered to her feet with Akari’s arm slung over her shoulders. “Let’s get you to the nuns and they’ll figure out what’s wrong. Stay awake!”

In the rush back to the temple, Yangchen was rife with fear for her friend. Akari couldn’t string together a coherent sentence and was on the verge of passing out. Yangchen had no idea if she should let her sleep, or if that would make her worse. 

Their return was met with a flurry of concerned nuns. They had felt the aftershocks of the earthquake and feared the worst for the young girls venturing through the mountain range. The healers looked over Akari, but couldn’t find anything physically  _ wrong _ with her. 

Yangchen fretted in the corner of the healing room as the nuns plied Akari with energy boosting fruits and nuts. Slowly, her friend regained her wits to her, but her exhaustion was still evident. 

“Young lady, Yangchen tells us you were performing a strange feat of firebending. Is that what put you in such a state?”

Sister Tashi stood at Akari’s bedside with a stern frown. All of the airbenders in the Western Temple squirmed under Sister Tashi’s scrutiny, but Akari only carelessly shrugged. 

“I guess? I’m not really sure  _ what  _ I did.”

As Sister Tashi bristled at Akari’s nonchalance, Sister Jamyang stepped forward with a reassuring smile. “Akari, perhaps you can explain again in more detail what happened after you and Yangchen fell into that crevice.”

Akari groaned and crossed her arms. “I’ve explained it like a million times already!”

“You weren’t really making much sense before,” Yangchen interjected before Sister Tashi could lecture Akari for her attitude. 

“Okay, fine. If you say so.” With a huff, Akari fell back on the pillows on the bed. “I didn’t see what happened, but somehow Yangchen knocked herself out when she airbended us safely to the bottom of the hole we fell in. I couldn’t wake her up and I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to do to help her…”

She turned to her side and hid her face into the pillow. “But, then I just felt  _ scared _ . I felt like Yangchen was disappearing. I don’t know how to explain it, but I know she was in trouble. If I didn’t do  _ something  _ I was going to lose her! So- I don’t know. My mother says fire is life. And everyone has an inner fire! If I use  _ my  _ inner fire to do things, shouldn’t I be able to reach someone else’s inner fire and help it? So I tried giving Yangchen some of my fire.”

Sister Tashi paled as Sister Jamyang stifled a gasp. Yangchen shared a confused look with Akari before Sister Tashi summoned her from the edge of the room. Both women closed their eyes and held their palms out to read Yangchen’s aura. After several tense minutes of silence, they left the room with grim looks and the promise to return shortly.

“Did I do something wrong?” Akari asked meekly.

Yangchen shook her head and sat on the edge of the bed. She grabbed Akari’s hand and squeezed it gently. “No way. You helped me! I’m sure of it. And- if they say it was wrong, well then  _ they’re _ wrong.”

As promised, the elders returned with an airbender visiting from the Eastern Temple. She repeated the process of reading Yangchen’s aura, then Akari's. “No, you’re correct in your assessment, Sister Tashi. There are undoubtedly traces of this girl’s essence in Yangchen’s spirit.”

“What does that mean?” Yangchen asked. It didn’t sound good, from how somber the women were acting. 

No one answered Yangchen’s question. Sister Jamyang sat on the other side of Akari and cupped her free hand between her own. 

“Akari, what you did was very brave. We don’t know what happened on the mountain, but I trust your judgement that Yangchen was in danger. What you did possibly saved her life. But, you must promise to  _ never  _ try to do something like that again.”

“What?!” Akari tried to pull away, but Jamyang held tight to her. “Why not? You just said I saved her! Why wouldn’t I try again to save someone who needs it?”

Jamyang shook her head. “Akari, you need to listen carefully to what I have to say. What firebenders refer to their inner fire is not just the source of their firebending. It is your very soul. When you reached out to nurture Yangchen’s inner fire, you touched her spirit itself. We’ve never heard of such an ability, but we can see how you  _ gave  _ Yangchen some of your fire to rejuvenate her. Do you understand what that means?”

“I gave her part of my soul,” Akari whispered, squeezing Yangchen’s hand. 

Yangchen returned Akari’s grip as she stared in awe. For Akari to do something the nuns had never heard of… To do something so  _ selfless _ , even if she wasn’t fully aware of what she was doing… Tears threatened to fall as Yangchen struggled to process the rush of emotions coursing through her. 

“Yes, Akari, you did,” Jamyang said. “And you must not try something like this again. This time, all you felt was physical exhaustion. You were lucky. Next time, _your_ spirit might fracture under the strain of supporting another life.”

“But, if I could help someone or-”

“Akari! Please!” Yangchen leaned toward her friend. Her throat constricted and she had to push through the fear in her heart. “You can’t do that again! I’m so thankful you saved me. I’m so happy we can have more adventures together- But we can’t do that if  _ you’re  _ gone. You can’t save me, save  _ anyone _ , at the expense of  _ your  _ life. That’s not fair!”

There was still a stubborn set to Akari’s brow as Yangchen began her plea, but it slowly smoothed out. Her golden eyes were slowly regaining the brilliance of the sun, and they shimmered with her own unshed tears. With a shaky breath, Akari nodded. 

“Okay- Please don’t cry, Yangchen. I’m sorry. I promise I won’t try that again. I don’t want to leave you either. You’re my best friend now and we have to go on lots more adventures. I still have to introduce you to my father’s dragons. And you have to meet my brother! And I-”

Yangchen dropped herself over Akari to hug her, both of them dissolving into helpless tears. As they comforted each other, a young airbender burst into the room. 

“Sister Tashi! There’s- The- The Fire Lord is here looking for his daughter. Princess Akari.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love my girls <3 
> 
> See y'all tomorrow~


	5. Bending

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Day 5: Bending

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the rest of these are real short bc I ran out of steam and ideas lol hope you enjoy nonetheless ~

Wind whips around Akari, bolsters her flames and brings them to towering heights. An inferno encirles her, a blinding light that burns gold. Yangchen’s air feeds Akari’s fire higher, hotter. With Yangchen at her side, Akari feels invincible.

Yangchen bends the air around Akari’s fire and guides it into an unending cycle of fire and air. She pushes the air lantern high above them, casting the festival in the ethereal light of wind encased flames. It doesn’t matter how many times Akari sees Yangchen’s technique, she will always be in awe of it.

The flames inside Yangchen’s winds are no longer under Akari’s control. It thrives under the nurturing caress of air currents. Akari relinquished her command of the fire, but she is still connected to them. This is the moment she loves most, when she can  _ feel  _ her fire flourishing in Yangchen’s element. 

With a sweep of her arms, Yangchen disperses the air lantern in a brilliant ring of fire. Applause surrounds them, but Akari pays no mind to the crowds. Her flames may be gone, but the giddy thrum under her skin remains.

“Beautiful as always,” Akari says as she wraps her arms around Yangchen’s middle. 

Yangchen presses a soft kiss to the top of Akari’s head. “Pales in comparison to my partner.”

The sensation of gentle winds feeding Akari’s flames pales in comparison to Yangchen's love nurturing Akari’s spirit. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> see you tomorroooooow


	6. The Moon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Day 6: The Moon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeehaw this week has been fun.

The sun brings life to the world. It warms the earth and brightens the day. Even as it descends past the horizon, the moon reflects the sun’s light to illuminate the dark of night.

The moon doesn’t need the sun. Whether it can be seen or not, the moon never stops pulling the ocean’s tides. It doesn’t need the sun, but humanity appreciates the sun’s gift to see the moon’s pale radiance.

Akari is the sun. She basks the world in her brilliance and her warmth. Everything is brighter with Akari around.  _ Yangchen _ is brighter with her.

If Akari is the sun, then Yangchen is the moon. She is the  _ Avatar _ . She pushes and pulls the world with her influence. The tides not of the ocean, but of  _ humanity  _ shift under her influence. Even if the world could not see her, she would still continue to exist.

But Yangchen shines the brightest with her sun at her side. 

With Akari there, Yangchen feels invincible. Her laughter and smiles come easier, the beauty and splendor of the world are best when shared with Akari. 

Yangchen is the moon, and she loves her sun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last one tomorrow woooo!


	7. Dancing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Day 7: Dancing/Free Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finale!!!

Existing in the spirit world bears no sense of time, no sense of purpose. Existence is passing. Some days it is on a whim, others it is to answer the call of the living. Akari wants to dance with Yangchen, so they simply do. 

They are giggling girls that spin as fast as they can. They are cheerful young women, joined by their friends as they follow the rhythmic beat of Water Tribe drums. They are dressed in their wedding finery, pressed close to each other and shifting their feet to whimsical instrumentals. 

Akari lifts her head from Yangchen’s shoulder. The hazy, undefined spirit world focuses and sharpens into the physical world. Her steps falter at the sight of a young boy staring at them in shock. 

“Oh, Yangchen, he’s grown so much since he found your memorial for me.”

As Yangchen turns to face him, Akari keeps her arms around Yangchen’s waist and stands on her toes to rest her chin on Yangchen’s shoulder. With both of them looking at him, the boy startles and takes a step back, then a hesitant step forward. 

“Should I leave you to talk with him?” Yangchen asks.

Akari laughs, pressing a kiss to Yangchen’s cheek. Her beautiful Avatar still asks such silly questions. Twining their fingers together, Akari squeezes Yangchen’s hand. She giggles and leads them forward.

“He’s your nephew as much as he’s mine, love.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> eyes eyes eyes 
> 
> This week has been fun! Thanks for reading my gushing over Akari and Yangchen! I love my girls <3
> 
> Wednesday is the last chapter of Sands of Time! See yall then!


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